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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pass · shower · face · last · snap · drill · degree · bound

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. face — to point toward
  3. degree — from a university
  4. degree — an amount
  5. degree — temperature
  6. drill — a practice
  7. face — part of the head
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. pass — a permit
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. bound — obliged
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. drill — army training
  15. last — finally
  16. shower — rain
  17. bound — tied together
  18. face — to confront
  19. last — final
  20. snap — to click
  21. shower — to wash
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. last — to go on
  24. drill — the tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com